We hope everyone had a great time at CicLAvia this past Sunday. For some great pictures and coverage of the event, be sure to check out a couple blog posts we especially liked, at Orange 20 and Metro’s The Source. You can also view some of our pictures from the event here. We also hope that everyone got a chance to check out our sharrows, 7th St.. and 4th St posters along the route. Tell us what you thought of them in the comments section below. Now on to the main event!

Last Tuesday (10/4/11) was the first quarterly format Bicycle Plan Implementation Team (BPIT) meeting. In addition to being longer, BPIT was also housed in a new, bigger, and (as some attendees noted) brighter, more inviting room. The meeting was focused primarily on West L.A. bike lane projects and presentations regarding the five year priorities’ Environmental Package 1. Design proposals for Ave. of the Stars, Westwood Blvd., National Place, Bundry Dr., Centinela Ave., and Overland Ave. were presented. LADOT Bikeways also announced plans for an online facility prioritization survey that will be coming soon, and City Planning gave us a preview of the City’s process for updating the Mobility Element. More on BPIT below the fold.

October BPIT Meeting

BPIT PowerPoint presentation

The West L.A. BPIT presentation is available for download here. Please feel free to download the presentation and review the projects in more detail for yourself. As always, you can also view all previous BPIT power point presentations on our BPIT tab, or by clicking here. The most up to date Draft Environmental Priority 1 list is also up for your viewing pleasure on the BPIT page.

West L.A. Projects

Westside project map

The common theme between most of these projects was the need to either remove parking or a vehicle travel lane in order to accommodate bike lanes. Certain corridors had segments (ie. Sepulveda Blvd.: Venice Blvd. to National Blvd. and National Pl.: Overland Ave. to National Blvd.) that could accommodate bike lanes while maintaining the existing configuration. In these segments, we will be moving forward with bike lane installations.

There were serious concerns about parking removal, especially in largely residential areas along Westwood. Also, with regards to the future Westwood Expo station, BPIT attendees expressed concern over how buses and bikes would interact as bus traffic is expected to increase with the opening of the Expo Line. Finally (leaving the best for last) for Avenue of the Stars, DOT is proposing removing a travel lane in each direction (3 to 2), and installing buffered bike lanes.

EIRs for Select Bike Lane Projects

Proposal for Avenue of the Stars in Century City

City Planning’s Claire Bowen quickly briefed us on progress related to implementing a number of Priority 1 bike lane projects that are expected to have significant auto traffic impacts, thus requiring an official approval process before they can be implemented. The City has recently conducted a request for bids to help write the Environmental Impact Reports needed to help the City’s decision makers (City Councilmembers and the Mayor) weigh the costs and benefits of implementing bikeways on the selected, prioritized streets. The City received four proposals and has already began conducting interviews. A selection should be made within the coming weeks. The City is pursuing a very aggressive timeline. The scope should be ready before the next BPIT meeting in January.

Taking back the Boulevard

Now here’s a welcomed surprise. Paul Habib with CD 14, announced that the Eagle Rock community is openly seeking a road diet for Colorado Blvd. Through their “Take Back the Boulevard Initiative,” residents hope to:

…make this central corridor through Eagle Rock a safe, sustainable, and vibrant street in order to stimulate economic growth, increase public safety, and enhance economic growth, increase public safety, and enhance community pride and wellness.

Unfortunately, removal of a travel lane for this corridor will very likely have a significant impact on auto traffic, triggering the need to conduct environmental review and roadway reclassification, prior to implementation. However, thanks to the BPIT process, these three miles of Colorado Blvd between Lincoln Ave. and the Glendale City limit have now been added to the Priority 1 environmental package. This means that Eagle Rock residents will be able to lobby their elected City leaders for a safer, more sustainable Colorado Blvd. sooner, rather than later. If successful, this project could set a precedent for the region as an example of vehicle travel lane removal to allow for increased safety and mobility for bicycles and pedestrians. Read more about how Colorado Blvd can be transformed further here.

You Decide

BPIT offers a platform for public input into Bike Plan implementation. However, not everyone is able to attend BPIT meetings. To remedy this, interns at the LADOT Bike Program, with input from LACBC and others, have been diligently working on a webpage that will allow anyone with access to the internet to vote on which facilities should be implemented next within the five year implementation plan.

BPIT attendees gave great input to the design of the page and we will be incorporating some of their suggestions. We’ll keep you posted.

Education

The Bike Program provided a bit of information on a few projects it’s working on including a new Public Service Announcement in conjunction with the LACBC and spoke cards that will better inform bicyclists of their rights. BPIT members also discussed some programs they think would be useful in helping to educated the public including a High School bicycle education program, sharrow education, partnerships with youth organizations and hiring a neutral facilitator to help work with neighborhood groups as new bike facilities are developed. DOT engineers also stressed that it is critical for advocates and concerned citizens to attend neighborhood council presentations to help show support for projects.

Multi-Modal LOS

City Planning also gave an update on DOTs efforts to shift to a Multi-Modal LOS. An update to the City’s Transportation Element is being planned, along with a name change to Mobility Element. Public outreach for the project will be conducted in the coming months.

Comments/Concerns

We’d like to know what you all thought of the new format and location. Please leave your comments below to help us improve the BPIT meetings in the future.

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8 Responses

Overland very steep between National and Palms, which will make it a fairly unpopular facility. Making the left turn from Overland to National Pl will have bicyclists crossing two lanes of traffic at the top of a hill when speed disparities are at their max. Additionally, many cars are accelerating toward the freeway ramps there at the recently widened bridge. It’s certainly not the route I take – and I go that direction quite frequently.

Motor Ave to the east is practically begging for a road diet and connects to existing bike lanes (and new sharrows). National Pl from Overland to Mentone/Motor is a much more gradual incline. Have you looked at following National to Motor, then doing a road diet to connect to Venice? It’s a more common and topographically-favorable route than what you’ve proposed.

I agree with Eric — that hill on Overland is pretty tough. If you’re not a strong rider, don’t have clip-in pedals, or just aren’t very good at utilizing all your gears to help get you up hills, you’re going to give up halfway up the hill and end up walking your bike. I know this because it’s what happened to the group I rode with from Palms/Culver City to UCLA for Bike to Work/Bike to School Day in April 2010. The Motor –> National Bl. route should be given serious consideration.

I agree with Eric and Niall. Motor Ave is much better suited for a bike lanes vs Overland.. especially due to the recently installed sharrows that reach all way to Pico… (and connect to the proposed Ave of the stars bike lanes.
Additionally, won’t the new Expo Bike way (phase 2) cross National/Motor as well ??? It seems like LADOT’s time and effort would be better spent connecting the future Expo bike path to Venice/and Pico via improved infrastructure on Motor instead of highly trafficked Overland, which not only has a steep hill but multiple freeway on-ramps… One can still cross Overland going up the graduall incline on nations and continue onto bike lanes on National PL without having to make a left, a Niall pointed out early. Don’t get me wrong, I’m definitely in favor of more lanes whenever possible, but shouldn’t we focus on connecting existing lanes/routes instead of adding more roads if unnecessary (ie Overland) ??

[…] County Model Design Manual for Living Streets is now available online. Notes from last week’s barely announced BPIT meeting that took several cyclists by surprise, myself included. It only takes Damien six months to get new […]

All of the westside bike lane projects–except for the Ave of the Stars– encourage predominately young male biking to the Expo rail line by way of north/south intersections through it. A mass transit bikeways connection in this area has a very high potential use as the distance to downtown is great enough for many people to choose the biking/rail option, rather than driving on the crowded freeway.

All of the westside bikeways options will look scary to the interested, but concerned bicyclist. Too much motorized traffic that is traveling fast. Without some form of protection from the traffic it will be subjectly dangerous and uncomfortable to ride for most people. The designs are aimed primarily for the young male cyclist. A road diet or narrower lanes would be encouraging more riders as it will slow down traffic. You have to be realistic who the target user is when you have bike lanes next to a lot of fast traffic.

The speed differences between two modes of travel are are a major factor for comfort, whether it’s bikes on sidewalks for pedestrians or cyclists using bike lanes next to motorized traffic. Six foot wide bike lanes on Chandler Blvd are much more comfortable compared to the same width of bike lanes on Fallbrook Ave, due to the differences in the speed of traffic. Bike lanes per se are not uncomfortable for most people, it’s mainly the amount and speed of traffic next to them that makes them uncomfortable.

For the Ave of the Stars, what’s to discourage cars from using the bike lane when it is twelve feet wide, including the six foot buffer?

The new BPIT location felt like people were more on a equal footing, as people were able to sit at a table, as opposed to the previous location which made the table sitters in the middle of the room the more dominate participants.

Someone should make sure to get to the location early to set up a sign outside. It was confusing for me if I had the right location when I arrived and there was no indication if I was at the correct room.

There is so little mass transit on the west side in North-South direction.

I cannot believe you would actually consider Sepulveda Boulevard to be a viable street for preferential treatment for single vehicle occupancy, (which is what a bicycle is) over mass transit buses that use this street.

I ride bicycles and use the bus system, if you slow down bus traffic on Sepulveda that would not be a good thing at all. If anything, Sepulveda should have a dedicated lane for mass transit.

I don’t want the car lanes to be smaller, there is no room for error on the cars part.
Those car drivers are distracted and in their own world. Smaller travel lanes will allow them to drift in the bike lane from behind me and I can’t see them coming. I rather see ahead of me and pay attention to “doors” opening then get hit from behind.

I have been almost “mirrored” more then I can count, one of my pet peeves. I wish the State of California would change the law that cars, buses, and trucks MUST give bicyclist 3 feet when they pass. Maybe, next year, Brown will sign it into law.

I’ve said this before hopeful motorist will start respecting bicyclist on the street by seeing more and more bicycle facilities’ on the road and then recognize bicyclist have the same right to be on the road as cars.